English
indent
Indent comes from Middle English indenten ‘to dent in’.
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500indenten‘to dent in’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1598–1600indent
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500indenten‘to dent in’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1598–1600indent
Earliest quotation: c. 1598–1600, William Shakespeare, As You Like It: “Seeing Orlando, it vnlink'd it selfe, And with indented…”
The story
Partly from Middle English indenten (‘to dent in’), equivalent to in- + dent (see dent); partly from Middle English indenten, endenten, from Old French endenter (‘to cut notches into’), from en- (‘in-, en-’) + dent (‘tooth’), from Latin dēns.
Every English word from Middle English indenten
Today it means
noun A cut or notch in the margin of anything, or a recess like a notch.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle English indenten / indent